DOS Games

Are you one of those people who have fond memories of great games from the 1990’s, but are too time-constrained to reverse the digital dark ages caused by the transition to new operating systems? In that case, the DosBox DOS emulator is just for you. Install it, get the old DOS games, and relive the good times.

Tetris (1984) – this game is a true classic and absolutely addictive. You have to drop differently-shaped blocks so as to completely fill up horizontal layers, upon which they self-destruct, thus clearing space for more. The speed at which they drop gradually increases throughout the game until it is no longer possible to keep up. There are many variants to this game. One that I remember enjoying had a small gay going walking around at the bottom and you had to maneuver and drop the pieces in such as way as to to not crush him.

The game was originally developed by a guy called Alexei Pazhitnikov who was working in a Soviet computing R&D facility. There were a lot of ugly squabbled over proprietorship of its IP, about which you can read more here.

Prince of Persia (1989) – in this classic you have to battle the evil Jaffar, the evil Vizier of Persia who seizes control of the empire while the King is away and imprisons his beautiful daughter. She is threatened with execution in one hour unless you, the Prince, escape the palace dungeons and rescue the Princess. To do this you need to battle the assorted perils of the Orient: a plethora of lethal traps, immortal skeleton swordsmen, the fat dude, your own mirror image and the dastardly vizier himself.

You have to complete all 12 levels in one hours, or the princess dies. The record-holders are two really sad Dutch dudes who finished it in a little more than 17 mins. My best record was 29 mins, which is also pretty sad.

Loom (1990) – this game of fantasy landscapes, rich dialog and mysticism is possibly the closest thing to art amongst its DOS brethren. The magic system involves the intriguing idea of playing different notes to manipulate the fabric of reality.

The year is 8021, during the “Age of the Great Guilds”. The story follows one Bobbin Threadbare, a gray-cloaked outcast from the Weavers Guild that controls the Loom – an object which is both a reflection of the world and a portal into its future.

Accompanied by the music of Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake, Bobbin journeys through the lands of the glass-makers, the shepherds and the blacksmiths in a quest to save the world from the evil Cleric – a megalomaniac who wants to raise an army of the undead and rule the world. To do this he must acquire the Scrying Sphere (crystal ball) of the glass-makers, the swords of the blacksmiths and the distaff of the Weavers with which to perform the incantation.

He captures Bobbin and acquires his distaff, using it to rip open the fabric of reality across a graveyard. This unleashes Chaos, who slays him. Bobbin has to fix the damage and battle Chaos for control of the Loom and the world’s destiny. He splinters the Loom, leaving Chaos holding sway over one half and providing a refuge for the Weavers in the other.

Minesweeper (1985) – first released on MS-DOS ages ago, this has since become a classic on multiple platforms. It is extremely addictive and has inspired an excellent comedy.

My current records are: 8 seconds for Small; 45 seconds for Medium; 2:52 min for Large. This however pales besides the world record, which is a mere 37 seconds for Large – now that is sad!

Wolfenstein 3D (1992) – this shoot-em-up featured revolutionary graphics for the time, that is, rudimentary 3D (which they boasted about in the title).

You are B.J. Blazkowicz, a captured US special forces soldier who must escape the prison at Castle Wolfenstein, kill the Nazis and their dogs, steal their gold, eat their chicken, thwart their twisted experiments and eventually assassinate Hitler. Observe a crazy speed run through Episode 1 here.

DOOM (1993) – this was another huge step up for graphics, this being the first major game to enable movement in three dimensions. You are a Marine in outer space tasked with single-handedly saving humanity from the hordes of demons unleashed when UAC teleportation experiments go awry, opening up an inter-dimensional rift into hell. This game became infamous for the numbers of sad people who set astounding speed run records, even through the hardest Difficulty levels which are beyond the skillz of mere mortals to complete.